Truck.



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APPLICATION FILED JAH. 1B. 1905.

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PATENT OFFICE.

UNTED STATES Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented March 13, 1906.

Application led January 1Q. 1905. Serial No. 241,850.

To @Zt whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVID H. Rows, a citizen of the United States, residin at akland, in the county of Alameda and tate of Caliornia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trucks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to trucks of the kind commonly used for carr Ying baggage and freight of all kinds; and t e object of my invention is to provide a truck which will be capablo of carrying its load with the same facility as such loads are carried by the ordinar trucks used, y but which, in addition, sha l be so constructed as to enable a heavy load to be taken up and down a Hight ofv The ordinary trucks now in use canstairs. notbe employed for the purpose last mentioned, and it is therefore evident that my invention reatly increases the field of usefulness of t 's particular class of devices.

An embodiment of my invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a side elevation of the whole truck. Fig. 2 is a lon itudinal section which shows the opposite si e of the truck inV inner' sideelcvation. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on the line a: a: of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow which intersects said line.

The frame of the truck is composedof'.theY

Vextend. a little beyond the end of the frame.

The frame is provided with the usual front guard 5. Upon the inside bf the said rails is secured a plate 6, which is adjustable by means of bolts and slots 7 8, such plates being placed opposite to each other. Extending elow each of the rails is a semicircular extension, shown in Fig. l as an ear 9 on the plate 6. The truck is provided with two pivoted sup orting-iegs I1, and means are provided for imiting the swing of said le s, as adjustable brackets 12, each preferaly provided with a slot through which passes a bolt 13, by which it can be secured in its adjusted position. The upper end of the bracket is recessed on the arc of a circle to meet and fit the rounded ear 9 when the bracket is at its upward limit. The ends of the arms formed by the recess in each .bracket form stops which engage with the rails 1 and limit the movement of the legs on their pivots. Each leg is made in two parts, so as to be extended i on the rod by set-screws.

:preferably provided with rubber buffers 25l The legs should also be provided with rubber tips 26 in order to avoid injury to carpets in when necessary, and the said parts are rabbeted together, as shown in Fig. 3, where 1li* indicates the extension of the leg. The connection between the two parts of the legs is made by means of slots and bolts 14. The legs are braced by a frame 15, which is connected to there near their upper end by a rod 16. It is further secured by the intermediate rod I7,'ivhich passes through both sections of the leg and through the brace. It will be nnderstood that the legs are tied togetherib the frame l5 and that the extension of eac tleg is adjustable and can be held at any. pint or adjustment by nuts upon the rods o riolts 17 and 14. Springs 18 are connected .the iegs and also to some fixed part of the freine o the truck-as, for instance, the yf oliwail cross piece 2, as shown in 'Fi .'2. These Ysprings always tend to pull theglegs toward the front of the truck. Connected to each leg is a rod 19, which extends along the side l rail of the truck toward the rear andterrriinotes in the handle 21, which isin convenient'reach of the operator. The side rails are provided with guides 22 23 for these rods,

and rneans'are provided for locking the le s in any desired angular position, as the ajustable stops 24, which are held in osition The guife 22 is cases where the truck is employed for moving ba gage or freight within houses. Y

n ordinary use upon substantially level surfaces this truck operates in the ordinary Way of such trucks. It is Well known that'it `is impossible to carry the ordinary baggage- 4truck with its load up afiight of stairs, and conse uently Ythe baggage or freight must be carrie by hand under those circumstances. By my invention the truck with its entire load can be caused to move up a flight of stairs or several of them under the control of a single operator.

in operating the truck under ordinary circumstances in railroad-stations, &c., where it is simply used to transfer baggage and freight from one oint to another on substantially level su aces, the rods 19 are pulled to the rear, so as to bring the le s to such an angle that they will be out of t 'e way. In this case the truck can be used like any ordinary truck. Under these circumstances IDO IIO

the rdd i9 and the le can be locked in a fixed position by means o the adjustable stops 24.

wardly on the handles,

Since this truck is es )ccially adapted for climbing stairs with its ioad, a different kind of operation takes place in these conditions. In tie first place the stops 24 will be moved upon the rod 19, so as to allow a considerable range of movement for said rod. On approachin f a [li ht of stairs the forward carrying-whee s are rought up a ainst the bottom stelp, and the legs are cause to move forward et 1er b Y means of the spring 18 or by being pushed orward by the rod 19. The operator then lifts up the handles, which allows the legs to swing forward to the position indicated by line y y in Fig. 2, bringing the fulcrum or point of su port near the forward end of the truck. Tlie operator now pushes down and forward upon the handles, whereupon, owing to the favorable leverage, the wheels will easily mount the first step, While the legs assume the position of' the lille z z of Fig. 2, because the truck-frame and the load has been swunfy bodily forward upon the said first step. he operator then raises the handles, which again allowsthe legs to move forward and furnish the same favorable fulcrum-point. He now pushes down and forwhich causes the carlying-wheels to move easily upon the second step. Thus I gain two steps of the flight while the legs remain upon the floor. In the next operation the operator lifts the handles, which action allows the legs to swing forward and rise upon the first ste the carryingwheels being u on the secon step. He now lowers the han les and pushes forward, when the same operation that has before been described takes place, and the truck-frame and carrying-wheels swing easily forward upon the third step. In this way the truck with its load can be stairs of any length, and hence heavy loads can be moved into houses and up the stairs in said houses without removin them from the truck. It follows from whatlflias been described that loads can be taken downstairs with equal facility, the operation being simply reverse so far as the manipulation of the egs is concerned, and the successive fulcrums are made from step to step downwardly instead of step to step upwardly.

I do not limit myself to the s ecific constructions and arranfernents herein described and shown in the drawings, as I desire to avail myself of such modifications and eguivalents as fall properly within the spirit o my invention.

caused to ascend fiights ofA Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a truck, a wheel-sup orted carryingframe provided with hand es, supporting legs pivotally secured to the frame intermediate its length, adjustable means between the legs and the frame, for limiting the movement of said legs, and means adjacent to said handles for moving the legs.

2. A truck frame and wheels, in combination with supporting-legs hinged to the frame behind the wheels, rods connected to said legs and extending along the handles and means for locking said rods to the handles and for releasing said rods, whereby the legs can be held in any position to form supports, and can also be released and caused to swing so as to vary their angular relation to said frame, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

3. In a truck, a wheel-su ported frame provided with handles, dependin semicircuar extensions on the side rails o the frame, supportinglegs pivotally secured to the frame intermediate its length, a rod from the legs to the handles for swinging the legs on their pivots, and adjustable stops for locking the legs against movement in any adjusted position.

4. In a truck, a frame carrying-wheels journaled therein, extensible two-part su porting-legs pivoted to said frame behind t ie carrying-wheels so as to form variable fulcrums, and means for changing the angular relation of said legs to said frame.

5. In a truck, the frame composed of side rails and cross-pieces, carrying-wheels journaled in said frame, plates secured to said side pieces behind the carrying-wheels and havin depending circular ears, legs pivoted in sai ears, and a bracket on said legs adapted to fit said circular ears.

6. In combination with a truck-frame and its carrying-wheels, pivoted legs, a rod connected to said legs, guides for said rods and adjustable stops on said rods cooperating with said guides for limitin their motion.

In testimony whereof I ave affixed my signature, in presence of two Witnesses, this 16th day of November, 1904.

DAVID H. ROWE.

Witnesses:

L. M. SEELY, J. S. JOHNSON. 

